PETALING JAYA, Aug 6 — Vintage fashion lover Dewani (Dee) Zolkifli started The Oldees in late 2010 to sell vintage wear.
In 2012, the fashion forward entrepreneur introduced vintage kimonos to the Malaysian market. She subsequently quit her full-time job to pursue the venture seriously.
“Back then Topshop had kimono-inspired outfits. I wanted to do something unique and different so I started bringing in the vintage kimono to be styled with a modern twist,” said the 39-year-old.
She recommends pairing the kimono tops with batik Jawa pareo and kerongsang, for example. Pairing simple vintage kimono tops with traditional statement jewellery like keronsang gives the outfit a fashionable edge.
After many years of dealing with vintage kimonos, Dee is incredibly well versed with the various types of kimonos. She explains that there are three types of kimono jackets: haori, michiyuki and dochugi.
The haori has similar looking sleeves like a kimono and it features a haori himo (fabric or corded tie) to fasten the opening.
The michiyuki features a double-breasted square neckline that makes it looks similar to the Malaysian and Indonesian baju kebaya. It also has a hidden pocket in the corner where you can store some banknotes or even your handphone.
The dochugi has an overlapping opening where you can close the top just like a kimono.
Under The Oldees, Dee also brings in kimonos for formal occasions and the yukata which is more suited for summer because of its lightweight fabric. “The yukata and kimono has the same shape but the kimono has more layers and is more detailed while the yukata is for warmer climates,” said Dee.
For the full-length kimono and yukata, there are variations; the tomesode is reserved for married women attending formal occasions like weddings while the furisode is for unmarried women.
Kurotomesode is the most formal kimono for married women and it is black featuring patterns below the waistline. It is normally worn by the mother of the bride during weddings.
Haori, michiyuki, dochugi, yukata and kimono come in a variety of fabric, texture, lengths, widths and weight. One of the popular textures is the revered shibori material where green beans are tie-dyed to the fabric, giving it a grainy feel.
Shibori can also be found in silk or cotton kimonos. “For certain seasons you can find kimonos in different colours and different types of materials. Based on my observation you can find certain cuts in certain lengths but sometimes you can’t find it in the colour or material you want,” said Dee.
She personally used to travel to Japan to handpick vintage kimonos either at the outskirts of the city or at temple sales. For the past two years, a friend assists her in buying the kimonos. “It’s because of the currency. To keep our costs low, it’s better if I ask my friend to ship it here,” she said.
Dee said that recently there is a “kimono boom” where suddenly it’s in trend now. When this happened, the prices for vintage kimonos shot up.
The demand is not just only in Asia but Europe where Europeans who are into Oriental culture are starting to buy vintage kimonos. She adds, “It’s versatile because you can go casual with it and you can also be fashionable with vintage kimonos. It depends on how you mix and match.”
Dee is also into other traditional wear like baju kurung, batik, baju kebaya, sari and cheongsam. She likes to mix and match various Malaysian traditional costumes with the vintage kimonos paired with vintage statement jewellery and accessories.
“As a customer myself I like to buy clothes where I can try it on so that’s why we started doing bazaars. We also sell online through our social media but I have to know what my customer likes and I will ask a lot of questions such as their height and weight so that I can gauge what kind of kimono can suit them.
“I don’t want them to feel cheated when the photos can’t really depict the clothes. It’s also better to feel the texture and material in real life,” said Dee. For her, customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance. She adds, “I want my customers to feel happy rather than buy something that doesn’t suit them.”
Dee has also ventured into upcycling her vintage kimonos with a sister company of The Oldees. Known as Dikara, the company focuses on fashioning cushions, ujami and zabuton (meditation cushion) from vintage kimonos.
Usually, zabuton is made out of cotton but Dee gives it a luxurious edge by sewing it with vintage silk kimono that has brocade details. “As some of the vintage kimonos have a slight defect, I will upcycle it for Dikara. The price range is from RM35 to a thousand over.
“We are also planning to make handbags but it’s still in the R&D stage. Originally we wanted to launch it this year but after the ‘kimono boom’ we decided to hold back.” She also has plans to do something out of vintage obi (kimono belt) but it is still in the planning stage as the material is quite difficult to use.
Besides selling at bazaars and social media,The Oldees also have selected collections sold at Twenty2 as well as TriBeCa in Bangsar and TGND in Johor Bahru. Alternatively you can also make an appointment to visit their showroom. For online shoppers, The Oldees can be found at Shopperz Bazaar (www.shopperzbazaar.com).
“When we first started the prices were okay as there was no demand for vintage kimonos but in the past few years there is a huge demand for it. We try to keep our prices low that’s why we operate through bazaars offline and appointments at our showroom or online via WhatsApp with our regular customers,” said Dee.
With almost five years running a business selling vintage kimonos, Dee realises she has to cater to her customer’s requests and not just her own personal style. “I like traditional and classic with modern twist and I try to cater to requests and styles of my customers. We have a wide selection now and some of it doesn’t really reflect my style. It’s a mix of what I like and what I see customers like.”
She also rents out the kimonos for magazine shoots, commercials and music videos. “You’ll be surprised to find my customers range from teenagers to 50-somethings. I also have a lot of expatriates as customers. The Oldees also ships to US, Australia, Brunei and Singapore. We had a bazaar in Public Garden, Singapore before,” she shared.
Surprisingly, the kimono doesn’t come in free sizes but the cuttings are almost the same, with differing lengths and widths. Take note that the vintage kimonos that The Oldees sell does not come with an obi.
Dee offers a service where if you can’t fit an obi, she can help sew one for you after you buy the cloth you want from any fabric shop. She explains that even for the obi, there are various types.
The obi from Nagoya is usually prefolded halfway while Maru obi has more intricate details and patterns on both sides. Fukuro obi has a gap in the pattern because the pattern is shorter.
The Oldees only sell one-off pieces but the ones that are popular are the shibori textured ones. Customers will select those fashioned from shibori or those with hand painted Japanese motifs or embroidery details. Some may prefer kimonos with more subtle details like a decorative inner lining.
Dee said that the Japanese who have seen The Oldees’ cross-cultural styling for the vintage kimonos are fine with it. She adds, “I guess like other cultures, they appreciate their traditional wear and like to see that it’s kept alive.”
The price range for The Oldees’ yukata and kimono range from RM65 to RM6,000 while the wedding kimonos are a different price range. A yukata obi costs RM50 to RM200 while a kimono obi goes for RM100 to RM3,000.
The Oldees
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/the.oldees/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_oldees/
